X Japan’s Yoshiki to be the first Japanese male to appear on the cover of Vogue Japan

The musician flew cross-country for the photo shoot just weeks after surgery.

Japanese rock legend Yoshiki from the influential band X Japan has a reputation for pushing himself to the limits, often performing until he passes out from exhaustion. His intense drumming style has led to a number of health problems over the years, including a herniated disc which ultimately led to him undergoing emergency surgery to replace a cervical vertebral disc.

While major surgery like that would put most people out for a while, merely three weeks after the operation Yoshiki hopped on a plane to New York to take part in a photo shoot for Vogue Japan.

While he was “still bleeding from surgery at the time” – as he recalled on his Instagram – he pulled through and completed the shoot alongside Argentinian supermodel Mica Argañaraz, and will become the first Japanese male to appear on the cover of VOGUE JAPAN since its first publication in September 1999.

A post shared by Yoshiki (@yoshikiofficial) on Aug 21, 2017 at 4:35am PDT

The October issue’s main theme is “Rock Star”, and features Yoshiki and Argañaraz on the front cover wearing similar black suits, with Yoshiki sporting makeup reminiscent of the late David Bowie. “It was hard for me to fly to New York after surgery, but it was worth it,” he wrote, saying it was “such an honor” to be a part of the shoot. The issue will go on sale August 28.